So that's summer done. August especially has passed in a blur, with few opportunities for bush-bashing at Cogden, or much else really. Life has been a bit full-on...
I'll start with a few pics from August 1st...
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| Great to see that Cirl Bunting has bred successfully again. |
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| One of four Clouded Yellows. |
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| One of many Rush Veneers, a common migrant. This one is really well marked. |
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| Nicely camouflaged Wall butterfly. |
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| Rosy Knot-horn, a proper little stunner, and new moth for me. |
Since then I've managed a couple more visits to Cogden, but seen little of note. Until today.
I so nearly didn't bother. I had already ignored the alarm a couple of times, then a message from Steve mentioned a few Balearics and two Arctic Skuas past Seaton. That got me out of bed. Mind you, seawatching was not on the agenda. My plan was to walk the beach at Cogden, on the off-chance that a Grey Phalarope or something might be bobbing about close inshore, following yesterday's soggy blow. I'm pretty sure I haven't walked the full length of Cogden Beach since the spring, so it was about time really...
In the end I did the coast path first, then returned along the shingle. A number of scans from inland had produced absolutely nothing of interest passing by, so upon hitting the beach I had zero expectations. Approaching half-way I spied in the distance a smallish, dark bird floating just offshore. My first thought was Balearic Shearwater, but a few paces later the penny dropped. It was much, much better than a Balearic!
Forgive the photo glut...
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| Juvenile Sabine's Gull - an early shot just for the record. |
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| There wasn't much in the way of floating weed, but the Sabine's did sometimes appear to seek out and inspect small clumps of what little there was. |
My first photo is timed at 08:10 and the last at 09:00, by which time the Sabine's Gull had worked its way almost to the western boundary of Cogden. Thankfully it then did the decent thing and flew E towards West Bex, passing Mike Morse who was still several minutes away back along the beach.
To put this record in context...
In the 22-and-a-bit years I've lived here, until today I think my Lyme Bay Sabine's tally was five (Lyme Regis, Seaton x2, Seatown and West Bay) and this is the first I have actually found. To do so during my first walk along Cogden Beach in many, many weeks says it all really.
I might well have used up my autumn jam prematurely.
Other birds of interest this morning were three Shags - unusual here - and a fly-by Sanderling. Thankfully the latter was quite close enough to check for eye masks and phalarope-ishness.
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| One of the three Shags, all of which were bobbing around together much too far out to clinch with bins, and all of which took flight the moment I focused the camera. Nailed though! |
I think the Sabine's Gull photos are very misleading, and convey no hint whatsoever of the immense challenge of getting decent pics from a low vantage point in a heaving sea. Here is the reality. Three shots from a single burst of seven...
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| Frame #2 'Going...' |
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| Frame #5 '...going...' |
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| Frame #7 '...gone.' |
So yes, tomorrow is the start of meteorological autumn. Bring it on.
